A vicar has denied that controversial plans to build houses on church land in Derby will definitely mean the demolition of a Scout hut - but local residents remain concerned.

Reverend Trudie Morris, of St Edmund’s Church, in Shelton Lock, has revealed plans to build three houses on “wasteland” behind the church.

But she said, if the money raised does not match the amount needed to implement an “imaginative vision” – which includes boosting the size of the kitchen and extending a room used by a nursery – she would go ahead with plans to build three more houses where the Scout hut is located.

Various initiatives have been put forward in order to raise the money needed and they will be used to match fund a further application to the Lottery for the total funding required.

Rev Morris said: “For several years, St Edmund's has been struggling with a financial deficit and the congregation has been finding it increasingly difficult to cover the costs of keeping the building open and fit for purpose as a church today.

Brownies from the Scout hut at St Edmund's Church, Derby, pictured in 2015.

"During the last two years, the St Edmund's Discipleship Team has been working on realising a vision for St Edmund's as an inclusive and outward-looking church where all are welcome to worship and use the premises.

"In order to deliver this imaginative vision, St Edmund's is first of all proposing to sell an unused plot of land behind the west end of the church for the building of three houses. This plot has been waste ground for many years. Access to the plot will be via a strip taken from the vicarage garden next door with vehicular access from Queensferry Gardens.

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"This means that access to St Edmund's and the Scout and Guide hut behind the East end of the church, will be unaffected by building issues and access to the new properties. The proceeds from the sale will be used to match fund a further application to the Lottery for the total funding needed to build the new safe and friendly access to the church and to reorder and extend the present premises.

"If further funds are needed to complete the project, the St Edmund's uniformed organisations will be invited to share the new St Edmund's premises. This would enable the sale of the plot of land behind the East end of the church, currently occupied by the (Scout) hut, for the building of three further houses.

She added that Scouts and Guides using the hut would be invited to use the new extended premises but volunteers do not believe there will be enough room.

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Treasurer for the hut’s executive committee, Sue Baker, said: “Rev Morris has explained that church funds are extremely low and I believe that expenditure is higher than income.

“I wouldn’t say it’s greedy. It’s just her need. But she needs to understand our perspective. We are a charity that serves 150 children every week.”

The Scout hut is on land owned by St Edmund's Church in Shelton Lock, Derby.

Ms Baker said she believed it was very likely that the church would go ahead with the building of all six houses – and that the destruction of the Scout hut was an inevitable outcome. She said: “My instinct is that, if they get the whole planning application, through then whoever wanted to purchase the land would want it as a whole.”

Ms Baker said the executive committee, which has been at the hut since it was moved to the site in 1962, would be forced to find a new location.

Mick Gaunt, a retired railway engineer who has worked as a volunteer with the Scout hut for many years, said the group was “absolutely furious”.He said: “It’s not very Christian, is it? If these plans go ahead there will be no green area for them to play in, and the storage area will not be big enough.”

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Tory city councillor Phil Ingall, who represents the Chellaston ward in which the hut sits, said he had been “inundated” with emails saying how “wrong and disgusting” it would be for houses to be built on the premises.

He said: “It’s all a bit disingenuous really. Rev Morris is not ruling out anything happening in the future. If you are not going to build six, why ask planning permission for them all?

“What have the churches got against Chellaston at the moment? The Church of England want to get rid of the Scout hut, and the Roman Catholic Church are selling their land to Lidl.”

Rev Morris said the church had been losing money for “several years” and the congregation had been “finding it increasingly difficult to cover the costs of keeping the building open and fit for purpose”.